PLURALISTIC  APPROACH to Therapy  

The approach I use is integrative, relational, and trauma informed; incorporating a wide range of interventions from different theoretical perspectives. However, it also respects cultural difference and the values, resources, strengths, preferences, and ideas which clients themselves bring to therapy.

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As a pluralistic therapist, I believe there are multiple pathways through which  clients can change; that there is no right way to "do therapy"; and each psychotherapeutic approach has its own unique contribution to make. Indeed, consistent findings from psychotherapy research suggests positive client outcomes are not specific to any therapeutic model but related more to common factors such as the strength of the therapeutic relationship, empathy, positive regard, genuineness and client expectations. 

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In early sessions,  we develop a shared understanding of what you want from therapy. Then, by working together collaboratively, and talking about your preferences and choices, we create a treatment plan that is unique to you.

 

Throughout the process of therapy, I will be actively seeking your regular feedback  to ensure therapy remains focused on your direction of travel or indicating  whether we need map a new route.

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EMDR Therapy

Most of the time your body routinely manages new sensory information and experiences without you being aware of it. However, when something out of the ordinary occurs and you are traumatised by an overwhelming event (e.g. a car accident) or by being repeatedly subjected to distress (e.g. childhood neglect), your natural coping mechanism can become overloaded. This overloading can result in disturbing experiences remaining frozen in your brain or being "unprocessed".  These memories can be continually triggered when you experience events similar to the difficult experiences you have been through. Often the memory itself is long forgotten, but the painful feelings such as anxiety, panic, anger or despair are continually triggered in the present. EMDR helps create the connections between your brain’s memory networks, enabling your brain to process the traumatic memory in a very natural way.

Sessions

The process is rapid, and any disturbing experiences, if they occur at all, last for a comparatively short period of time. Nevertheless, you need to be aware of, and willing to experience, the strong feelings and disturbing thoughts, which sometimes occur during sessions. 

During EMDR treatment, you will remain in control, fully alert and wide-awake. This is not a form of hypnosis and you can stop the process at any time. Throughout the session, I will support and facilitate your own self-healing and intervene as little as possible. Reprocessing is usually experienced as something that happens spontaneously, and new connections and insights are felt to arise quite naturally from within. As a result, most people experience EMDR as being a natural and very empowering therapy

What can EMDR be used for?

EMDR can be brief focused treatment or part of a longer psychotherapy programme where sessions last between 60 to 90 minutes.  EMDR can accelerate therapy by resolving the impact of your past traumas and allowing you to live more fully in the present. In addition to its use for the treatment of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, EMDR has been successfully used to treat: anxiety and panic attacks, depression, phobias, complicated grief, addictions to name a few. But the research base is growing.

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What do clients say?

"Thank you for all the help and for listening to me over the last 6+ months. These sessions have made a big impact on how I perceive and manage anxiety, as well as reshaping my learned behaviours and attitudes, i.e. being much kinder to myself. I've had a lot of counselling in the past, but I have found your sessions to be the most beneficial to me, so thanks again!"

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"I am grateful that i took the step to ask for help as I feel I have gained the tools to help me address my anxieties. More importantly having someone listening to me (without judgement) and telling me that it is ok to feel the way that I do has helped massively and has allowed me to accept what has happened and that I can move forward without my pass weighing heavily on my shoulders. So thank you, you have helped me more than you can possibly know. "

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"Counselling allowed me to reach my goal of becoming abstinent from alcohol, helping me to openly discuss specific aspects of my life which I had been unable to talk about with counsellors who did not identify as LGBTQ in a non-judgemental way. "

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"Andrew. You have made a huge difference to my life by listening without judgement and giving me the tools to fight this insideous "big monster" that is alcohol. I will live my life appreciating your support."

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"Hi Andrew, I’d just like to say thank you very much for your help, the last couple of weeks especially you have helped me massively and I’m going to use all the tools you’ve given me and work on myself, I really appreciate it whatever your doing seems to be helping me, again thank you ever so much."

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What do colleagues say?

"Andrew is an exceptional counsellor: highly skilled, experienced, inclusive and compassionate" . - Ms Leeanne McKenna

"Andrew is a genuine, punctual, reliable, respectful, empathetic and compassionate person. His commitment and acceptance of his clients helps provide a stable and safe place which is non-judgemental where they can begin to work towards change." Eileen Gardner